Alert archive / New Mexico / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 13, NWS Albuquerque, NM

September 12, 2002Sandoval County, New Mexico

NWS Albuquerque, NM issued this tornado warning at Sep 12, 2002, 6:26 PM MDT for Sandoval County, New Mexico. It was in force for 49 min. 2 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Sep 12, 2002, 6:26 PM MDT (00:26 UTC)
Expired
Sep 12, 2002, 7:15 PM MDT
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS Albuquerque, NM
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Sandoval County, NM

The radar

The Albuquerque radar (KABX), 28 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:26 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Sep 12, 6:30 PM MDTHail 0.75Bernalillo, NM
Sep 12, 6:55 PM MDTHail 0.75Bernalillo, NM

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in.

The nearest sounding before it

Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM (KABQ), launched 00:00Z, 0.4 hours before the alert went out and 35 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM at 00:00Z on 2002-09-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 426 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM at 00:00Z on 2002-09-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 64 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
426 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-45 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1859 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
40 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
64 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
104 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

942 
WFUS55 KABQ 130026
TORABQ
NMC043-130115-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM
625 PM MDT THU SEP 12 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ALBUQUERQUE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTH CENTRAL SANDOVAL COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL NEW MEXICO

* UNTIL 715 PM MDT

* AT 621 PM MDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 7 MILES NORTHWEST OF RIO RANCHO...OR ABOUT 11 MILES WEST OF
  BERNALILLO...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE...
  8 MILES NORTH OF SANDIA PUEBLO AT 640 PM MDT
  2 MILES NORTH OF SANTA ANA PUEBLO...4 MILES NORTH OF BERNALILLO AT
     645 PM MDT
  2 MILES SOUTH OF SAN FELIPE PUEBLO AT 700 PM MDT

AT 621 PM MDT SPOTTERS REPORTED A TORNADO WITH THIS STORM.

TAKE COVER NOW LEAVE MOBILE HOMES AND VEHICLES. IF POSSIBLE...MOVE
TO A BASEMENT. OTHERWISE MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM OR HALLWAY ON THE
LOWEST FLOOR. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS AND OUTSIDE WALLS.

IN ADDITION TO THE THREAT OF A TORNADO...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING
WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED. GO TO A SAFE PLACE NOW

LAT...LON 3542 10687 3524 10686 3524 10632 3550 10637

The office that day

Everything else NWS Albuquerque, NM issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 12, 6:20 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningABQSandoval40 min
Sep 13, 2:41 PM MDTTornado WarningABQChaves34 min
Sep 13, 2:41 PM MDTTornado WarningABQChaves34 min
Sep 13, 2:44 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningABQDe Baca61 min
Sep 13, 3:16 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningABQChaves59 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in New Mexico, 2002Every tornado warning in 2002Tornadoes in 2002

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.